Picadillo

Ingredients
1 pounds ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 (8 ounce) jars green olives, drained and chopped
1(6 ounce) can tomato paste
1/2 cup water
2 hard boil eggs

Directions
Brown the ground beef in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat until crumbly and no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Pour off any excess grease, then stir in the onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, chili powder and white vinegar; cook for 2 minutes before adding the red pepper, green pepper, olives, tomato paste, and water. Bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 10 minutes, or until the peppers have cooked to your liking. Chop hard boil eggs and add to mixture. Serve over rice.

I got this recipe from my friend from work. She is Spanish and her and her husband love this meal. She told me what was in it, but I also looked on Allrecipes.com for guidance. I gave her alittle to try the next day and she said it came out good. Some recipes I found for Picadillo called for raisins and capers, but she makes it with the green olives and eggs. The saltiness of the olives is so good with the meat. When I first told James about the recipe he didn't think it sounded so good, but he loved it! My brother Michael also ate with us and he enjoyed the meal as well!

Frittata Bites with Chard, Sausage, and Feta

Ingredients

Non stick vegetable oil spray
1 12 ounce bunch Swiss chard, stems and center ribs removed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 c chopped onion
8 ounces mild Italian sausages, casing removed, sausage broken into 1-inch pieces
8 large eggs
1/4 c heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp salt
1.2 tsp ground black pepper
1 c crumbled feta cheese
Fresh Italian parsley leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 8x8x2-inch baking dish with nonstick spray Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add Swiss chard and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Drain. Finely chop chard, then place in kitchen towel and squeeze dry. Set chard aside.
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion to skillet and saute until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add sausage and saute until brown and cooked through, breaking up with fork, 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
Whisk eggs, cream, salt, pepper in large bowl to blend. Add chard and cooled sausage mixture, then feta; stir to blend. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish.
Bake frittata until set n center, 45 to 55 minutes. Let frittata cool and cut into bite size pieces. Garnish with parsley. Serve warm or at room temperature.

source: bon appetite magazine

I made this recipe for Father's Day. Every year we have a BBQ for my father and we all make something.

Cookie Monster & Elmo Cupcakes

Gina and I made these for Nico's 2nd birthday. The eyes of Cookie Monster and Elmo are made of marshmallows and Reese's pieces. We also used an orange Reese's pieces for Elmo's nose. The details of the face is made with decorating gel. They were alot of fun to make!

Delicious Pineapple Muffins

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour muffin pans, or line with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, stir together 2 cups flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt. Drain pineapple, reserving 1/4 cup juice. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour in the reserved juice, egg, milk, and 1/4 cup melted butter. Mix just until blended.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together the cinnamon, brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour, and 1/4 cup melted butter to make the topping.
4. Spoon batter into muffin cups, then spoon crushed pineapple over the batter and sprinkle with the cinnamon topping.
5. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the crown of the muffin comes out clean.


Amount Per Serving Calories: 183 Total Fat: 6.5g Cholesterol: 29mg

source: Allrecipes.com

I made these muffins because I bought a pineapple a few days ago and it was really ripe. I didn't want it to go bad. The muffins were so good!

Broccoli-Stuffed Chicken

Ingredients
2 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped fresh broccoli
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chicken broth
Hot cooked rice

Directions
Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness. Combine poultry seasoning, pepper, curry powder, garlic powder and salt; sprinkle over chicken. Combine broccoli and cheese; place half in the center of each chicken breast. Fold long sides over filling; fold ends up and secure with a toothpick.
Place, seam side down, in an 8-in. square baking pan. Add broth. Cover pan loosely with foil. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Remove foil; baste the chicken with pan juices. Bake, uncovered, 10 minutes longer or until meat juices run clear. Remove toothpicks before serving. Thicken pan juices for gravy if desired. Serve with rice if desired.

source: Allrecipes.com